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It is no secret that the coronavirus pandemic has driven our daily lives digital—work, education, social gatherings, and, of course, health care. Congress and CMS responded to the public health emergency by waiving limitations on reimbursement for telehealth services rendered to Medicare patients. These waivers introduced new flexibility and vastly expanded Medicare patients’ access to…

On January 28, 2021, the White House issued President Biden’s Executive Order on Strengthening Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (the “Executive Order”), which seeks to increase access to affordable health insurance and strengthen Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, particularly in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.  In addition to this Executive Order, the…

The U.S. Senate recently voted unanimously to approve the Competitive Health Insurance Reform Act (Act), which the House of Representatives had already passed earlier in the fall. Currently, health insurers have federal antitrust immunity under the McCarran-Ferguson Act for state-regulated activity that constitutes the business of insurance. Should President Trump opt to sign CHIRA into…

As technology has advanced over the years, there has been a corresponding push for virtual visits with health care providers.  In fact, many state boards of medicine and other regulatory agencies have sought to amend regulations and guidances to make telehealth a reality for patients across the U.S.  However, despite the technical allowance for telehealth,…

The recently passed “Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act” (CARES Act) is sweeping legislation that will have widespread impact on companies in the health care and life sciences space. In addition to expanding coverage of COVID-19 testing and preventive services, the Act includes provisions to address health care workforce needs, eases restrictions surrounding telehealth…

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has proposed updates to its standards for health plan issuers offering plans through federally-facilitated and state-based Exchanges for 2021.  The proposed rule would, among other things:  revise the risk adjustment methodology; update issuer user fees and cost-sharing limits; amend medical loss ratio regulations (including with regard to…

Health policy has been the focus of several House Energy and Commerce Committee hearings this month.  Notably, the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee held its first legislative hearing on cannabis policy, although much of the hearing focused on the status of marijuana research under the Controlled Substances Act, as discussed in a recent Reed…

The House Energy and Commerce Committee held hearings December 10, 2019 to examine nine legislative proposals intended to expand health insurance coverage and reduce health care costs, including Medicare buy-in bills.  The Committee also recently held hearings on FDA oversight of the US drug supply chain and regulation of cosmetics, along with public health preparedness…

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized a “price transparency” rule that requires hospitals to make detailed charge data – including payer-specific negotiated charges – available for all inpatient and outpatient services.  Additionally, the final rule mandates that hospitals make “consumer-friendly” charge information available for at least 300 “shoppable” services.  While CMS deferred…

On June 12, 2019, three Congressional committees have scheduled hearings on health care policy topics:

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The House of Representatives has approved H.R. 987, the “Strengthening Health Care and Lowering Prescription Drug Costs Act,” which packages seven prescription drug and insurance-related bills recently approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee.  The legislation is intended to:  increase generic drug competition; fund Affordable Care Act “Navigator” outreach and enrollment programs and…

Recent Congressional hearings and markups have concentrated on prescription drug pricing, insurance access, and other health topics.  For instance, last week the House Ways and Means Committee unanimously approved H.R. 2113, the Prescription Drug Sunshine, Transparency, Accountability and Reporting Act of 2019 (STAR Act).   The legislation would, among other things:

  • Require drug manufacturers to report their “justification” for drug price increases that exceed certain thresholds.
  • Mandate that manufacturers of drug, biologicals, devices, and medical supplies publicly report on the Open Payments database the value and quantity of free samples given to providers.
  • Extend to manufacturers without a Medicaid rebate agreement the requirement to report average sales price for drugs covered under Medicare Part B, and authorize civil money penalties for failure to report such information or for reporting false information.
  • Direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to publicly disclose certain rebates, discounts, and other price concessions achieved by pharmaceutical benefits managers (PBMs) and to report on drugs furnished in the inpatient hospital setting.

Earlier this month the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved 12 bills aimed at reducing prescription drug and other health care costs, including legislation intended to:  bolster generic drug competition; support Affordable Care Act insurance enrollment programs and state-based insurance marketplaces; reverse Trump Administration policies on short-term, limited duration health insurance and State Relief and Empowerment Waivers; and establish an “Improve Health Insurance Affordability Fund” to help states lower premiums in the individual health insurance market.

In addition to these markups, Congressional panels have held hearings various health policy issues, including the following:
Continue Reading Congressional Committees Continue Focus on Prescription Drugs, Insurance Coverage Policy

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has requested public comments on ways to remove barriers to the sale of health insurance coverage across state lines in order to expand consumer choice.  In particular, CMS is interested in how states can utilize Section 1333 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which authorizes two or…

The House of Representatives approved two “gag clause” bills on September 25, 2018 that would prevent insurers from restricting pharmacies from informing consumers about lower cost, out-of-pocket prices for their prescriptions.  The bills were approved by the Senate earlier this month, and are now cleared for the President’s signature.

Specifically, S 2553, the Know…

The Departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services have issued a final rule that expands the availability of short-term, limited duration insurance policies that are exempt from Affordable Care Act (ACA) qualified health plan standards (e.g., the requirement to provide essential health benefits, prohibition on preexisting condition exclusions, lifetime and annual dollar limits,…

The opioid crisis continues to be a focus for Congressional committees. The House Energy and Commerce Committee held hearings on prevention and public health solutions to the opioid crisis, along with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s role in combating the opioid epidemic. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing focusing on…

The Trump Administration has issued a potentially highly-significant proposed rule intended to expand the availability of short-term, limited duration insurance policies that are exempt from Affordable Care Act (ACA) qualified health plan standards.  Under the proposed rule, issued by the Departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services (the “Departments”), the maximum duration of…

While previous broad Republican efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act (ACA) have failed, the GOP tax bill cleared by Congress today has succeeded in effectively repealing the ACA’s individual health insurance mandate.  By way of background, the ACA established a penalty for failure to maintain health insurance coverage that provides at least minimum …

Several recent Congressional hearings have focused on health policy issues. For instance, the House Energy and Commerce Committee held hearings on Food and Drug Administration regulation of over-the-counter drugs and Public Health Service Act health workforce programs.

The Senate Finance Committee held hearings on the Graham-Cassidy health insurance reform bill, CHIP funding reauthorization, and health…